Canadian Foreign Minister Holds Secret Meeting With Indian External Affairs Minister Amid Diplomatic Stand-Off

The diplomatic tensions between Canada and India continue to evolve, with recent reports of an alleged secret meeting between Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly and India's Minister of External Affairs, S Jaishankar, in Washington a few days ago as per a report in the Financial Times.

The alleged meeting took place amid the ongoing diplomatic standoff between the two countries, sparked by Canada's allegation of India's involvement in the killing of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar.

While neither the Canadian nor the Indian foreign ministry has officially confirmed the meeting, it suggests a diplomatic effort to address the strained relations between the two nations.

Canada had recently relocated approximately 30 diplomatic staff members from India to Kuala Lumpur or Singapore, as reported by Canada's CTV News. This move underscores the seriousness of the diplomatic situation.

Following India's directions on reducing diplomatic staff in India to acheive diplomatic presence parity, Canada's Foreign minister had said, "We are in contact with the government of India. We take Canadian diplomats' safety very seriously, and we will continue to engage privately because we think diplomatic conversations are best when they remain private,"

In fact, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had also reaffirmed that his country will continue to "engage responsibly and constructively with New Delhi" and that they did not want to escalate the situation any further.

The diplomatic dispute began when Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau alleged potential Indian involvement in the killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a Canadian citizen. In response, India strongly rejected the allegations, deeming them absurd and motivated.

In a tit-for-tat exchange, India expelled a senior Canadian diplomat, and Canada took a similar step. Furthermore, India requested Canada to reduce its diplomatic staff in India to establish parity in diplomatic presence.

Despite these tensions, both Canadian and Indian officials have expressed their desire to resolve the matter privately and to engage constructively with each other. The secret meeting may be an indication of ongoing efforts to ease the diplomatic stand-off between the two nations.